12 Witnesses
Let these stones be a witness to what we have done here this day.

Pastoral Blogging, Pt. 7

Jul 26th, 2007 | By art rogers | Category: Blogging, General Christian, Pastoral Blogging

I am cleaning out my feed reader. After a while, you just have to start pulling some of the things you don’t read all the time. Honestly, I track those blogs I really like in a folder of “live bookmarks” on the bookmark toolbar in Firefox. There are five there and I check them a couple of times a day.

If you don’t know what a live bookmark is, your browser has an option when you click the rss feed chicklet:

(umm… if you don’t know what an rss feed is, you should probably read my previous posts on this subject, but I’ll give you a reprieve and offer this cool link: video – rss explained in plain english [ht: Desiring God Blog]

Most of the time, I use bloglines, but for those select few blogs, I opt for a live bookmark which is a drop down menu that shows the latest posts. It updates mui pronto and I don’t have to log into bloglines and sort through all of the other feeds that I don’t want to read at the moment.

Which brings me back to my original purpose. Sometimes you have to weed out feeds you aren’t reading. A lot of times, when you decide to subscribe to a feed, you feel sort of obligated to hang in there. Listen, there are plenty of times I have read an incredibly thoughtful post from someone and thought, “Hey, there’s gonna be more of this good stuff.” Generally there is, but too often, it is a long time coming. Sorting through their other posts waiting for the really good stuff is why I got a feed reader, so I could skim.

When I got back from camp, though, and found 300+ feeds waiting on me, I had had enough. I spent a couple of hours on my couch just sifting. By the time I finished, it was midnight and I was supremely irritated from the process. I’m glad everyone was asleep, or I would have been likely to have snapped at my family just for being alive at the moment. When something puts you in that frame of mind, it is time for a change.

Also, I am dumping almost all of my SBC politics feeds. I used to keep track of what everyone was saying because I had to be current. Truth be known, I had pretty much quit reading most of them months ago unless someone linked to them. I was skimming, but my heart has been out of it for a while.

At this point, I have a hard time keeping up with just the stuff coming from SBC Outpost, and I’m a contributor.

There have been a few, more thoughtful blogs, to which I am subscribing, and I thought you might like to know who they are.

Tops of my new interest is Emily Hunter McGowin. That girl knows her stuff and is deep like big water.

Lu has caught my interest and secured a feed in bloglines. She is a former missionary and current Nashvillian. She likes her blogging so much, she is willing to pay to do it (she uses typepad). Who am I to talk? I own my own domain.

Joe Ball is the Student Ministry guy for the Kentucky Baptist Convention and a long time friend. He keeps me hooked up with thoughts on Youth Ministry at Despising None Blog and Podcast.

Finally, I recommend to you an old blogging ally and someone who has made a huge leap from SBC politics to serious cultural engagement and thoughtful cultural commentary/conversation, Kevin Bussey.

Along with these changes, and more, expect my blogroll to change. Almost every SBC politics is going to come off of it. Please don’t get your feelings hurt you are there and get dropped. All things must grow and change and 12 Witnesses is doing that, as well.

[edit]

What the heck!!! I forgot to commend to you the fine blog of Timmy Brister, Provocations and Pantings. Timmy rocks with some massive depth, but also will give you phenominal knowledge on photography, family and life. I guess I forgot him because I have been reading him for a while, but in editing my blogroll, I realized I had never added him. My bad, TB.

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11 comments
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  1. Lu July 26th, 2007 10:00 am

    Aw, how cool! Work is slow today so I’m (supposed to be) working on my marketing paper. As is typical, I’m avoiding. ;) So I thought I’d drop in on you. You always have something new and profound for me to think about. But instead, I find my name, on your list. I’s so excited! Now I have seven actual real live readers. :) Seriously, thanks. I am blessed.

    Yeah, I’m gonna have to clear out bloglines too. I added a bunch of new feeds recently, but I just can’t keep up with all of them and still be a good student. Or have a life.

  2. Kevin Bussey July 26th, 2007 2:40 pm

    I’m glad I made the cut!

  3. Timmy Brister July 26th, 2007 3:08 pm

    Thanks Art for the nice recommendation. I really appreciate it. This series has been really helpful to pastors and lay people who are new to the blogosphere and all the technical features that accompany it.

    Thanks again,

    Timmy

  4. Dorcas Hawker July 26th, 2007 4:13 pm

    Art -

    I know I’m on your Firefox 5 feeds you read more than once daily … right? Ha! Seriously, with your busy life I doubt you have time to read my introductory paragraphs, much less an entire epic post. Keep it real, and follow the advice Alan and Bryan are always giving me — when it comes to blogging, just do what you want … it is supposed to be fun, interesting, positive, etc. etc.

    Dorcas

  5. Joe Ball July 26th, 2007 8:21 pm

    Thanks for the kind words. It is good not to get voted off.

  6. Ben July 27th, 2007 9:17 am

    Art, the blogging world is not unlike the traditional world of message sending and receiving. There are millions of messages being sent every second from different sources. The hard part is to tune in only to those that are meaningful, substantive, and overall contribute to your passion. If you don’t, you risk being crippled by the immense options available.

    A great book on this principle is The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz. His premise is that we think we want more choices and that more choices will make us happier. Yet the opposite it true.

    Thanks for the reminder to be careful where we spend our time–even in the blog world.

    Blessings, Ben.

  7. Bob Cleveland July 27th, 2007 5:05 pm

    Thanks much, Art. I just went and set up Google Reader and added all the blogs I read. Took about 10 minutes and will be a big help to me. Particularly next year when I retire.

    You done good.

  8. Dorcas Hawker July 27th, 2007 8:32 pm

    Art -

    I’m not one to complain you know. I suppose you have “done good” to make this decision to cull your time commitments. But I’ll admit to being a little bummed I’m off your blogroll now. You were one of the major blogs to have me on the list and several people came to my blog from here. Of course I’ll defend your right to make choices and put whomever you wish on your blogroll, but at the same time it is kind of like “hey, I don’t want to be deleted.” You know. Blog town can be a tough gig sometimes.

    Dorcas

  9. Art Rogers July 27th, 2007 9:12 pm

    Dorcas,

    Don’t get your feelings hurt. It’s not against you. I’m trimming everything.

    Besides, you are in really good company. Did you note all the names that got removed from the overly bloated blogroll?

    Anyway, I have tried to switch themes, even in my blogroll.

    And to everyone I’ve removed- feel free to take me off of your blogroll if you want. It won’t offend me I assure you.

  10. Dorcas Hawker July 27th, 2007 10:12 pm

    Art –

    I don’t suppose my feelings are overly hurt or anything. You just kicked off a crisis of blog identity I suppose. I am often motivated by my need to excel at whatever I do. So I find myself wondering what I can do to make my blog more “something” that keeps up with Emily and Lu and Kiki as writers who manage to stay on the “not SBC emphasis” blog roll. I suppose it is a female thing because I enjoy all their writing too and wouldn’t suppose myself to be a better writer or more intelligent than any of them by any means. In fact, I just added Emily and Lu on my blogroll too because I thought … hey these ladies really have something to say! Nevertheless, I find myself wondering if I to have something to say … am I just writing into the wind. Oh, I know I have readers who enjoy my writing too. Blog town is big enough for all of us. It just hit me as weird to see my name no longer on the list (and yes I did note others were gone too). Sort of like “oh no, am I the ditz among all these brainy women? Do I need to reinvent my blog once again!?” And so forth. So I don’t plan on deleting you from my blogroll as “payback” or anything so high school as that. I’m really not offended, just wondering what I want out of my blog. Do I want to strive to keep the pastor readership? Or am I okay with having been involved with the SBC discussion for a while, and am now glad to let people go on their way and continue writing about more personal stuff and let those who wish to read it to do so.

    So, I’ll probably TP your house the next time I’m in Tulsa or something, but other than that … we’re cool. :)

    Dorcas

  11. Emily Hunter McGowin July 28th, 2007 1:09 pm

    Hey Art,

    Thanks for the recommendation and the honor of being among your new interests. That’s a great encouragement.

    I hope your trimmed down blogging lifestyle works out well for you. :)

    Have a blessed Lord’s day,

    Emily